Overview

Flowering plants are much more common than non-flowering plants. The success of flowering plants is primarily due to the flower’s close relationship with animals in the process called pollination. Over time, flowers have developed adaptations to ensure that the best pollinator for their species will visit and often return to feed. In fact, flowers’ fragrance, bright colors, nourishing nectar, and varied shapes are considered adaptations to attract specific pollinators. For example, the bright colors of flower petals are thought to help flowers stand out against a green background. Many flowers, such as a black-eyed susan, have a bull’s eye pattern of color to focus animal attention on the part of the flower with pollen and nectar. Violets have both a weak bull’s eye pattern and “nectar-guides”— a pattern that radiates out from the nectar cup. Many flowers have nectar guides, which aren’t always visible to the human eye.

Birds and bees find different flowers attractive, largely due to differences in the animal senses. Birds have a poor sense of smell but a keen color vision. Bees use both color and odors to find a suitable flower. The shape of the flower also plays a role in determining the kind of pollinator who can feed from the flower. Butterflies must have a perch to land on while feeding. Hummingbirds can hover in front of the flower and so don’t need a place to land. Pollinators have also adapted to ensure that they will have access to flower nectar. Animal

adaptations include a sense of smell, color, preferences, beak shape (especially noticeable in hummingbirds), and tongue length.

The activity children will complete has them making flower observations as pollinators come and go, then asks them to consider why some pollinators frequent specific flowers more than or instead of others.